Moment toddler, three, runs towards a busy road after escaping from nursery playground through a broken fence

• James Maguire, three, was on his own for up to 14 minutes in Staffordshire 

This is the horrifying moment a three-year-old boy escaped from nursery through a broken fence and ran towards a busy road.

James Maguire was said to have been on his own for up to 14 minutes in Stone, Staffordshire, after escaping from the playground at Elmhurst House Day Nursery on May 16.

His mother Fiona, a 46-year-old NHS worker, said James, who is non-verbal, ‘needs extra attention, and for them to not even notice he was gone is just heartbreaking’.

CCTV footage showed the toddler standing in the middle of a main road after running through a town centre.

Bosses at the nursery have since apologised after Ofsted launched a probe. 

His mother Fiona, a 46-year-old NHS worker, said James, who is non-verbal, ‘needs extra attention, and for them to not even notice he was gone is just heartbreaking’

Mrs Maguire has now taken her son out of the nursery, as she feels concerns over James’s safety were ‘swept under the carpet’. 

Footage showed the tot standing in the middle of a crossing for 23 seconds before he darted into town.

StokeonTrentLive said a member of the public had seen the boy but staff at the nursery assured them it was not one of their youngsters.

Elmhurst House Day Nursery found James and brought him back, describing the incident as ‘its responsibility and its failure’.

A spokesperson said those at the nursery are relieved no harm came to the toddler and assure no such event had happened before.

‘Following an immediate investigation, we have taken urgent steps to ensure that this could never happen again,’ they added.

James Maguire was said to have been on his own for up to 14 minutes in Stone, Staffordshire, after escaping from the playground at Elmhurst House Day Nursery on May 16

Elmhurst House Day Nursery (pictured) found James and brought him back, describing the incident as ‘its responsibility and its failure’

Mrs Maguire told the publication that she is furious that she was not informed of her son’s escape until hours afterwards and does not believe her and her husband were given the full story. 

The mother-of-three said they were first told James had been found on school premises, the nursery car park, after only being missing for a few minutes.

But she feels this was clearly not the case after seeing the CCTV>

‘When my husband got to see the school’s own CCTV, you could clearly see him going through the broken fence,’ she said.

‘And the CCTV from the high street clearly showed him well away from the site. He was standing there, in the road, for ages. James would have no idea of the ramifications of running out in front of a car.’

 He had escaped from nursery through a broken fence and was seen running towards a busy road

The mother-of-three said they were first told James had been found on school premises, the nursery car park, after only being missing for a few minutes 

James’s family complained to Ofsted two days after the escape, on May 18. They came out to the nursery that same day. 

Mark Sutton, the county council’s cabinet member for children and young people, said: ‘The safety and welfare of our children and young people is paramount to this council and this was clearly a very upsetting incident for the family.’

Ofsted said the provider was ‘not meeting some of the requirements’, adding that a welfare notice was served to the nursery.

They said: ‘This is a legal notice that requires the provider to take the actions below within the timescales set out.’

The nursery said it had ‘taken action to mitigate the incident reoccurring’.

Actions Ofsted required the nursery to carry out included improving risk assessments, ensuring staff are deployed well enough, adhering to child to staff ratios and qualifications and ensuring each child had a key person. 

Elmhurst was given until June 1 to enact the changes, which the regulator said it has done. 

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